Hunters Asked to Spare Bears – November 17, 1935

Crater Lake National Park, Ore.–An appeal is made to Southern Oregon bear hunters not to kill Crater Lake Park bears, which have migrated from the park area to lower levels. Inasmuch as the bear season opened in November 1, it is entirely probable that Crater Lake bruin in their wanderings will find themselves in line of fire.

A number of sportsman point out that as a result of being in proximity of people the entire Summer and learning to regard men as friends, the bears are exceedingly tame and have no fear for hunters. To kill animals of such tameness is not declared to the sport but more like slaughtering beef cows.

Most of the thirty or forty bears in the park during the Summer are identified by names and some have been returning to the Crater Lake area each Spring for several years, but never-the-less each season witnesses the absence of a number of bruins–their pelts probably hunters’ trophies.

Since the arrival of snows, a number of the bears have been lingering at the kitchen door of the mess hall at Park Headquarters and have become quite an attraction for late season park visitors. Two cubs, Frankie and Johnnie, have shown more boldness than most of their fellows in the way of begging for food. They sit on their haunches for minutes at a time in the hope some food will be thrown to them, and if unsuccessful in their waiting, they arise and walk upright to the kitchen door to investigate.

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